


LoK Drabbles (2017)

by Lancre_witch



Category: Legacy of Kain
Genre: Mostly Gen, Multi, Only reoccurring characters are listed, See summary for full list, a couple of crossovers with Good Omens and Discworld, and list of pairings, from my tumblr
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-24
Updated: 2017-12-24
Packaged: 2019-02-16 02:07:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,409
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13044276
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lancre_witch/pseuds/Lancre_witch
Summary: A collection of drabbles covering most characters and eras of the series, arranged by theme in chapters.Full list of characters in approximate order of appearance: Janos, Moebius, Vorador, Raziel, Ariel, Nupraptor,Mortanius, Azimuth, Malek, The Seer, Kain, Turel, Zephon, Melchiah, Rahab.Pairings: Janos/Vorador, Janos/Raziel, Ariel/Nupraptor, Ariel/Raziel, implied Moebius/Mortanius





	1. Janos' Cats

**Author's Note:**

> For @dongtopus, my tumblr friend directly or indirectly responsible for about half of these, who also convinced me to collect them all together.

**Schrodinger**

"No. You are not allowed in here. Out."  
Moebius carried the cat out of the timestreaming chamber for the umpteenth time and firmly shut the door. Finally the device whirred into life. Lightning arced across the room and earthed itself in the copper spheres. Everything was ready, but-  
"No, don't touch that!"  
Too late - the cat disappeared with a puzzled mew.  
*3000 years earlier*  
"Chronos, are you there?" Janos looked around the timestreaming chamber for the source of the noise.  
"Mew."  
"Hmm?"  
"Meep!"  
Janos looked down. "Ah."  
The cat purred happily in his arms as he left the chamber.

 

**Wintering Out**

"Oh you're wonderful."  
"Come here sweetheart, give me a cuddle."  
Such phrases were not uncommon in Vorador's mansion, but the target of their attentiond was. Vorador had managed to convince Janos that it was too cold for him to spend the winter in Usterheim. His happiness when he agreed was quickly damped when he realised his sire had brought his cats with him. The things got everywhere, his brides paid them more attention than they did him, and they shed hair over everything.  
"Never again," he said as Janos paused their chess game to pet one of them. "Never again."

 

**No carpenter’s ever built a door strong enough to deny a cat or a lover - Apollodorus of Carystus**

Janos settled back in Vorador's arms. Despite everything; the Sarafan, the distance, the words said and left unspoken, he would always return here. He whispered a drowsy "I love you", as his eyes slip closed.  
Vorador idly kissed his sleeping lover's head. He would have to leave all too soon but for now he could simply rest.  
Vorador was woken by several small determined nudges to his leg. Bleary eyes opened to find one of Janos' numerous cats kneading the bedclothes and mewing to be fed. He glanced at Janos still sleeping peacefully. Vorador sighed and threw aside the quilt.

 

**Introductions**

Raziel flinched as a large grey cat jumped onto his lap. Janos had introduced him earlier as "That's just Greebo, don't mind him," and had rubbed his tummy. As far as Raziel could tell, Janos was the only being in Nosgoth who could do so and not lose an arm. He watched, glad he did need to breathe, as the scar riddled tom kneaded his lap, attempting to get confortable on the bony surface. Every time he tried to move, claws sank into his flesh warningly.  
That had been over an hour ago. Raziel's legs were going numb.  
"Janos, help."

 


	2. Pillar Guardians

**Blood Red, My Love**

What he remembered most of all was the blood. Freshly spilled on her red dress, he barely noticed it seeping into his own robes until they, too, were crimson.  
Even as he held her lifeless body, his mind searched for hers in vain.  
Grief tainted thoughts spilled into the rest of the circle. Let the world crumble - she was no longer part of it.  
He could not stop the memories flashing before his eyes even when he sewed them shut and the taste of blood was still as strong as when he kissed her cold lips for the final time.

  
**Couplet - Death's Gifts**

**Lifetimers**

They were metaphors, but even metaphors can be real. Mortanius had learned the trick of seeing them early in life when he was too young to think of his own mortality. He had thought of it a game, seeing how the glasses' carvings reflected the lives they measured.  
Skulls were carved in his, of course, and Moebius' was covered in clocks and gears as complex as the man himself. Bane's was strung about with vines and flowers while the sand in DeJoule's shone like sunlight. The one thing they all had in common was that their time was running out.

 

**Books**

The library was black as night and out of time, found far beyond the most distant stacks in the Stronghold's library, yet only separated from it by a shadow's breadth.  
It contained the true biographies, living books which wrote the subjects story as they lived it. Such a library was invaluable to the timestreamer, informing him of his enemies schemes before they even thought of them.  
But the book he always came back to had nothing to do with his plotting. He opened the well thumbed tome and for a moment the light glinted on the gilt title, "Mortanius".

 

**Pet**

Her new pet was absolutely adorable. She really needed to send her 'uncle' a thank you letter. Without him she never would have found him.  
"Aren't you precious?" she asked and stroked his ears. He growled and snapped at her.  
"Yes you're a viscous monster aren't you? Now let's get you dinner."  
Turel growled from the centre of the blood circle. Azimuth kissed him on the nose and stepped back before he could bite her.  
"Mummy will be right back."  
She carefully locked up Moebius' time streaming device and went to find a prisoner to feed to her new vampire.

 

**An Unusual Summoning (crossover with Good Omens)**

"Hi. Name's Crowley, Serpent of Eden."  
Azimuth stared at the man in the circle until he lowered his outstretched hand.  
"I won't waste time. Can you fight a vampire?"  
"No, but if you sign over your soul-"  
"No. I want demons to help me ravage Nosgoth!"  
"Nosgoth?" The demon looked worried. "Do you still have the squid?"  
"Squid?"  
Further questioning was curtailed by the door being kicked in. Azimuth gave in, banished the demon, and prepared to battle Kain.

Crowley reappeared in the bookshop and declared to the world in general and Aziraphale in particular. "I need a drink."

 

**A Paladin's Duty**

Malek's entire life wound around his fellow guardians. They were the closest thing he had to family, and he had failed them yet again. Thirty years ago he could not save Ariel and five centuries before Moebius had- no not now. It was too late for that.  
He could not blame Nupraptor for sending him away, in words full of bitterness and anger. They were true.  
Yes, his life had been given for the circle once. Now as he battled Vorador for the final time he knew it would be again. This time he hoped it would bring him absolution.


	3. Blood Omen 2 Scenes

**The Seer**  
She had outlived her name, outlived her family, even those who had been made immortal. She had outlived her place in this world.  
Too much vampire to be spared the curse and too much hylden to be accepted by them after the Binding; her life had always been on the edges, but never more than now.  
One of her forgotten races had returned, their wrath like coals burning in their palms. A Hylden would have aided them, a vampire would have fought them. She was neither.  
Soon she would find out if she was Hylden enough to survive the Device.

 **Angel of Death**  
Vorador had urged Janos to stay in sanctuary, but he had had his taste of confinement.  
As he wandered the streets of Meridian he could smell snow in the air even around the smog choked slums.  
He would have believed the old woman in the doorway was dead if not for her heartbeat. Death pale and cold as charity, she would not make it through the night, much less the next season.  
Whispering an apology, he lifted up her sleeping form and gave the only kindness he could.  
He left silently as snowlakes fell like feathers onto her cooling corpse.

 **Finding Peace**  
Janos stretched his wings out in the deserted bath house. Ironic how the same glyph energy which had kept him captive also heated the water which was now soothing his aching limbs.  
Vorador had all the information he could give and with it the hylden would fall. There was nothing more for him to do. If ever there was a time for relaxation and indulgence it was now.  
Some time later Janos was stirred from his doze by the sound of screaming. He listened for a moment then settled back in the knowledge that Kain had succeeded in his quest.


	4. The Tour

**Part 1 – An Inauspicious Start**  
What with one thing and another; getting killed, getting trapped in a hell dimension, Janos had never seen Kain's empire before now. Nosgoth had changed considerably over the centuries, but Kain had been happy to give him a tour.

They started at the fallen pillars, not the happiest place for the tenth guardian.  
"Oh Kain," he whispered. "What have you done?"  
"What hasn't he done?" Ariel faded into view, eager to complain about Kain to new people. "His selfish, bullheaded decision not only damned the world-"  
"Perhaps you would like to meet my sons?" Kain said quickly, leading him away.

 **Part 2 - Turel**  
"I'm afraid you’re too late to see Raziel,” Kain said as soon as they were out of earshot of Ariel, "but my next eldest Turel is always happy to receive visitors." And the one least likely to give you a shock, he added silently.  
He held out his arm and teleported them both to a keep deep within the mountains.

"Turel is... somewhere," Kain finished as he looked around the empty room. "Give me one moment please."  
Left to his own devices Janos took it upon himself to look around, ignoring the distant cry of, "What do you mean 'disappeared'?"

 **Part 3 – A Chilling Experience**  
Janos gingerly stepped over an impaled corpse just inside the door. Even his generous heart struggled to find anything nice to say.  
"Just down here," Kain said, trying unsuccessfully to hide the bodies from view.

"Note the intricate carving on the statue," he said through chattering teeth as a flurry of snow fell across the courtyard.

Even Kain's patter died for a moment upon seeing the throne room, but he rallied. "The stained glass in this room is arguably the finest in Nosgoth."  
He tried desperately to direct Janos' horrified gaze anywhere but the corpse in the centre of it.

 **Part 4 – Interesting**  
"Well, this is certainly very..." Janos considered the options available and settled on "...interesting."  
The Cathedral had never been the greatest example of human architecture. Now, it was... interesting.  
"And throught here," Kain continued, pushing aside a cocooned body, "is the heart of the cathedral. My son has done wonderful things with the decor."  
Janos tried to hide his disgust at the bloody webs which covered the walls.  
He looked away, then stepped back. Something huge and hideous was stuck to the ceiling.  
It waved at him and he absentmindedly waved back.  
"What is-" he began.  
Kain quickly stepped in front of him. "And this way..."

 **Part 5 – A Bit of a Shock**  
Janos went along with Kain's tour of the graveyard, but felt he had to object when Kain led him into a mausoleum. "I really don't think-" but his protests were pushed aside along with wall hangings bearing Melchiah's clan symbols.  
"Oh," Janos said. "Kain I'm so sorry." His youngest was clearly interred here. It would be impolite not to pay his respects.  
"It was a bit of a shock," Kain said, then shouted, "Melchiah, a visitor for you!"  
Janos looked at the behemoth in horror, then his ingrained politeness kicked in.  
He held out his hand. "Lovely to meet you."

 **Part 6 – At last**  
Kain felt quite cheerful as he led the way around the Drowned Abbey. Surely if anyone could make a good impression on Janos, it was Rahab.  
He spoke at length about sconces, scrollwork and vaulting, and pointed out interesting gargoyles, while Janos' smile slowly became less forced.

"If you take a couple of steps back and look up you can see the stained glass- aargh!" Kain stepped back a bit too far and disappeared from view with a splash from below.

Some time later Kain sat in a towel, shivering and steaming, but smiling while Janos and Rahab discussed philosophy.


	5. Miscellaneous Drabbles

**Care and Concern**  
Vorador winced as Janos dabbed a cotton swab across still raw skin.  
“Did you not see the clouds gathering? You should never have set out,” Janos scolded gently.  
“Would you have preferred me to stay away?”  
“I would have preferred you to take more care.” _I’m not worth that._  
Janos pressed a kiss to his forehead where the rain burned skin was already - thankfully - healing. He could never understand why his childe would risk himself just to see him.  
Vorador sat silently as his sire fussed about him. The truth was, he would gladly go through any pain for Janos.

 **Candyfloss and Culture Shock**  
Melchiah looked at the pink…stuff on the stick he was holding in puzzlement. Humans in this era apparently considered this to be food. He wasn’t even certain it was organic.  
He prodded it dubiously and some of the fragile cobwebby substance stuck to his claw. He gave it a cautious lick and his eyes widened.  
Blood has many sterling qualities. It is the source of life itself, high protein and low calory but not sweet. The spun sugar dissolved on his tongue and a smile slid onto his face. Maybe the humans did have the right idea after all.

 **Scenes from the Great Nosgothic Bake Off**  
**Why Kain is no longer allowed to do the documentary sections of GNBO**  
“They’re a sort of biscuit…” Kain raised an eyebrow and the human’s explanation faltered yet again.  
“Sort of crunchy on the outside with a soft centre. These ones heve bits of chocolate in and these are made with oats and raisins.” They pointed to the two piles of cookies and proffered the tray nervously.  
Kain picked one up with care and snapped it in half. He looked at it dubiously then took a very small bite.  
“Do you have chocolate in Nosgoth?”  
The human’s question was ignored in favour of snatching up the tray and teleporting out of the bakery.

 **Best Laid Plans**  
Moebius had been planning his showstopper for weeks. In fact, he had traveled back in time to give himself more time to prepare.  
He had kneaded, proved, dyed and sculpted his dough into an ouroboros. A sharp kick to the shin had stopped Kain changing his oven settings, the snipped dough had risen into scales, and all he needed to do was the final decoration.  
His hands shook as he tried to place the sugarcane fangs. This needed to be done delicately...  
"Hello, Moebius!"  
Raziel appeared next to him and Moebius jumped, driving the sugar fangs right through the cake.


End file.
